DAHLONEGA

city, seat (1833) of Lumpkin county, northern Georgia, U.S. Gold was discovered in the locality in 1828, and the site was settled and incorporated in 1833 after one of the nation's first gold rushes; its name derives from the Cherokee taulonica (yellow metal). A U.S. mint operated there from 1837 until 1861, when Georgia seceded from the Union, and Dahlonega-minted gold coins are highly prized by collectors. Dahlonega is the trading centre for surrounding farmlands; the raising of broiler poultry is the chief activity. North Georgia College was established in Dahlonega in 1873. The city is the southern gateway to the Chattahoochee National Forest, which embraces Amicalola Falls State Park and includes the Anna Ruby Falls, Track Rock Gap, and a portion of the Appalachian Trail. Pop. (1990) 3,086.